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Chinese culture

Chinese culture
Latest news and updates on Chinese culture including the country’s traditions, food, values, history and festivals.
A Confucius statue in Nanjing, Jiangsu province. Confucianism has traditionally been the predominant ideology in Chinese cultural and intellectual contexts, with other philosophical schools usually sidelined. Photo: Shutterstock
Chinese history

As I see it | How ancient Chinese philosophers make sense of modern headaches

Scholar Daniel A. Bell has written an entertaining new book, exposing a new generation to ancient Chinese wisdom on the issues of our day.

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Art

Midea Group scion’s Shunde art museum shifts focus to amplify local voices

Food and Drinks

Hong Kong’s famous Oi Man Sang dai pai dong opens dessert shop

Hong Kong society

Over 250 rare Han dynasty relics on display in major Hong Kong showcase

Development chief Bernadette Linn calls exhibition a ‘sequel’ to last year’s Tang dynasty showcase, with 95 per cent of relics shown in city for first time.

Secretary for Development Bernadette Linn (right) views a Han dynasty artefact. Photo: Handout
Chinese overseas

Being Chinese | Growing up Hakka, around a language that few dared to speak publicly

My relatives spoke Hakka, but behind closed doors. Imagine my surprise when I finally found myself in a public Hakka-speaking environment.

Lessons from China's history

Reflections | What an old Chinese snack can teach people about the ‘proper’ way to eat dishes

The evolution of ‘biluo’ in Tang-dynasty China highlights how there is no unchanging way in which a dish ought to be prepared and enjoyed.

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Food and Drinks

Kunafa prawn? From Shandong to the Nile, Cairo’s love affair with Chinese food

From a 63-year-old restaurant chain to high-end hotels, Cairo has no shortage of Chinese food, tweaked for the local palate.

A chef at work at the Four Seasons Hotel Cairo’s 8 Restaurant. The woks used at the Cairo restaurant are sourced from China. Photo: Four Seasons Hotel Cairo at Nile Plaza
Chinese zodiac predictions

Is the Year of the Horse’s third month lucky for you? Forecasts for all signs

Feng shui master Andrew Kwan breaks down this lunar month’s prospects for all 12 Chinese zodiac signs in health, love, work and finances.

Art

US painter becomes Hong Kong Artists Association’s first non-Chinese member

Vermont native Nissa Kauppila talks about fusing Eastern and Western painting styles on discarded materials following her recent induction.

Horoscopes

Horoscopes: what’s your luck like in April 2026, Metal Dragon month?

Work pressures are higher for many signs this month, like the Rat and Monkey, while good fortunes will continue for the Ox and Rabbit.

What’s your luck like in April 2026, Metal Dragon month? Photo: SCMP Graphic
Chinese artifacts

Turning walnuts into ‘jade’? Social media goes nuts over old Chinese tradition

You will not actually make jade by rolling walnuts around in your palm, but this Chinese tradition can boost hand strength and calm anxiety.

A social media trend takes on an ancient Chinese tradition in the form of rolling a pair of walnuts around in your hand until they turn into “jade”. Photo: YouTube/ growithjessie
Hong Kong society

Editorial | Ageing Hong Kong should welcome more open conversations around death

Recent events are nudging Hongkongers to move past long-standing taboos and embrace end-of-life and funeral planning.

China’s Communist Party

The winners from China’s growing intercity football rivalries may surprise you

Lighthearted contests between areas with different customs, dialects and cuisine encourage local pride but ultimate control is elsewhere.

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Lessons from China's history

Reflections | Cremation was frowned upon in ancient China, so why was it so widespread?

Though seen as barbaric, cremation was a common, practical choice for families in China’s Song dynasty that reflected their economic reality.

Despite burial being the preferred way of final disposition in Chinese tradition, cremation was widespread during China’s Song dynasty, as many families couldn’t afford to bury their dead. Photo: Shutterstock
Food and Drinks

A Chinese takeaway kid’s Hong Kong-style French toast with a twist

London bakery Cantoast’s deep-fried milk bread comes in flavours such as salted egg. It’s Hong Kong-style baking but not as we quite know it.

An early line-up of toast creations by Cantoast, a bakery in London blending traditional Cantonese flavours with modern flair. Photo: Instagram/haydoncantoast
United States

How Chinese-American playwright is telling ‘new wave of stories’ about diaspora

Rising artist explores identity, politics and generational divides through off-Broadway plays rooted in personal experience.

Food and Drinks

Mouthing Off | Is stinky tofu ban for US restaurant discrimination or lack of common scents?

Whether stinky tofu, durian or strong spices, what smells are acceptable and what aren’t is ambiguous. Where should the line be drawn?

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Food and Drinks

Hainanese chicken rice origins and its versions in Singapore, Malaysia and more

With roots in Hainan’s Wenchang chicken, Hainanese chicken rice shows how a dish can quietly evolve into distinct regional iterations.

Hainanese chicken rice at a restaurant in Hong Kong. From humble origins on the Chinese island of Hainan, the dish spread across Asia, evolving into much-loved local variations from Singapore to Vietnam. Photo: Warton Li
China society

Opinion | Chinese youth are embracing Ching Ming with cultural confidence

Young people visiting the graves of historical figures reflects a cultural shift and the pursuit of a sense of continuity with the past.

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Asian cinema: Chinese films

Review | Pegasus 3: Shen Teng roars back in Han Han’s blockbuster racing sequel

Shen Teng stars as a former rally champion who has fallen on hard times in Pegasus 3, which really takes off in its exhilarating third act.

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Asian cinema: Hong Kong film

What happened when Ann Hui adapted Eileen Chang’s classic stories?

Director Ann Hui has adapted three of Eileen Chang’s stories for the big screen. We look at two: Love in a Fallen City and Eighteen Springs.

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Chow Yun-fat (left) and Cora Miao in a still from Love in a Fallen City (1984), directed by Ann Hui.
Food and Drinks

How Okinawan food evolved with Chinese influences to become ‘truly unique’

Long ago, Okinawa was part of the Ryukyu Kingdom, a trade hub linking Japan to Asia. Today, dishes like goya champuru reflect this history.

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Champuru is a representative dish of Okinawa, Japan. Its use of goya, or bitter melon, reveals its Chinese influences. Photo: Getty Images
US-China relations

Growing Pains meets the ‘kill line’: a new Chinese hot take on the American dream

Internet commenters retrofit the viral metaphor to US movies and TV to highlight financial and social insecurity.

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Hong Kong society

‘From big renovation to big burial’: Wang Fuk Court residents mourn on Ching Ming

Day dedicated to sweeping graves and honouring dead marked across Hong Kong, but tradition proves painful for survivors of deadly blaze in Tai Po.

Food and Drinks

Forced to stop selling stinky tofu, this Taiwanese restaurant fought back

The owner of Southern California’s Golden Leaf reveals how a neighbour’s vendetta has seen the popular street food dropped from his menu.

A plate of stinky tofu. The street food popular in mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan is prized for its distinct, potent stench - but for some, the smell is simply too much. Photo: Shutterstock
Chinese overseas

Being Chinese | Chinese overseas need not keep to ourselves. I certainly don’t

Half of my close friends in London are Chinese; the other half are not. This balance did not happen by accident.

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People take selfies in front of the archway of Chinatown in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 2025. Photo: Xinhua
Lessons from China's history

Reflections | History of Chinese flatbreads reflects how food has echoes of faraway places

How ‘hubing’ came to China is reflected in Hong Kong’s Jenny Bakery cookies smelling like Malaysia’s Rotiboy coffee buns, Wee Kek Koon says.

Mainland China

Video | Paper AI robot offerings for tomb-sweeping festival

One online review notes ‘times change fast, I hope my grandfather likes it’ for paper OpenClaw offering.

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